China
China’s State Administration for Market Regulation announced on 13 November that a China-led proposal titled “Virtual Power Plant — Part 4: Primary Frequency Regulation Functional Requirements and Specification” had been approved as a project of the International Electrotechnical Commission. The project identifier is IEC 8B/293/NP. Experts from several countries will now develop the document; project approval does not mean the standard has been completed or published.
The project covers terminology, system architecture, aggregated equivalent modelling, performance parameters, control modes, communications, testing, online monitoring and dynamic evaluation for virtual power plants participating in primary frequency regulation. It applies to virtual power plants that aggregate resources such as distributed generation, batteries, charging facilities and controllable loads for connection to a power system. Primary frequency regulation requires electricity resources to adjust power rapidly when grid frequency deviates, reducing the deviation and supporting system stability.
The Chinese regulator said existing international standards do not cover the full set of technical requirements for virtual power plants providing primary frequency response. The project record published by the British Standards Institution says the proposed specification will address distributed and heterogeneous resources, sensitivity to communications latency and aggregated response, while treating virtual power plants as complementary to conventional frequency-regulation resources. Detailed provisions, technical values and the publication date remain subject to the IEC drafting and approval process.
Australia
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission finalised amendments to Financial Accountability Regime reporting rules and guidance on 13 November. The changes remove the requirement to report key functions for the FAR register and remove the requirement for accountability maps to identify which people report directly to an accountable person. They took effect that day.
The regulators estimate that the changes will reduce reporting for all accountable entities and about 4,500 accountable people, while halving the number of updates to accountability maps. APRA said the key-function fields have not yet been removed from existing APRA Connect forms, but supplying that information is now voluntary. The associated amending rules were registered on the Federal Register of Legislation on 12 November and are in force.
The FAR applies to regulated entities in banking, insurance and superannuation and to their directors and senior executives. The regulators said the amendments change reporting content only. Obligations concerning honest and careful business conduct, allocation of key responsibilities, deferred remuneration, notifications to regulators and consequences for breaches remain unchanged. Proposals for broader changes, including clearer thresholds for notifying accountability changes, were outside this amendment.
United States
The US Department of Justice announced on 13 November that Johnson Controls Inc. and two subsidiaries had agreed to pay US$5 million to resolve allegations that failures to meet cybersecurity requirements in federal contracts and subcontracts violated the False Claims Act. The contracts, spanning January 2018 to August 2025, covered building products and services for NASA and the Departments of Defense, Energy and Justice.
The department alleged that the companies lacked sufficient knowledge of and control over their information systems and consequently failed to control access to protected government information. For contracts requiring compliance with National Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 800-171, the government also alleged that the companies did not maintain contract-compliant system security plans or adequately document, develop and implement plans of action and milestones for correcting deficiencies and reducing vulnerabilities.
The settlement also resolves two whistleblower proceedings brought on behalf of the United States. Kelly Vance, a former Johnson Controls employee and one of the whistleblowers, will receive US$850,000. Both the Justice Department and the General Services Administration’s Office of Inspector General state that the resolved claims are allegations only and that there has been no determination of liability, distinguishing the confirmed payment agreement from conduct that has not been decided on its merits by a court.
Editorial framework: This briefing uses Sustenesis as an editorial framework for selecting facts, organising relationships and structuring information, with attention to differences and constraints in rules, responsibilities, resources, risks and social relations. Sustenesis functions here as a method of organisation rather than a position or commentary; the body remains limited to verifiable facts.
Sources
State Administration for Market Regulation of the People’s Republic of China, “我国牵头虚拟电厂一次调频国际标准正式立项 为全球能源转型贡献中国方案”, https://www.samr.gov.cn/xw/sj/art/2026/art_209469b89a514e32813315aff4157d4c.html
British Standards Institution, “IEC 8B/293/NP PNW TS 8B-293 ED1: Virtual Power Plant – Part 4: Primary Frequency Regulation Functional Requirements and Specification”, https://standardsdevelopment.bsigroup.com/projects/9026-13640
Australian Securities and Investments Commission, “ASIC and APRA release final guidance to streamline FAR reporting”, https://www.asic.gov.au/about-asic/news-centre/find-a-media-release/2026-releases/26-281mr-asic-and-apra-release-final-guidance-to-streamline-far-reporting
Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, “Streamlining FAR administration”, https://www.apra.gov.au/consultations/streamlining-far-administration
Federal Register of Legislation, “Financial Accountability Regime (Information for register) Regulator Rules Amendment Instrument No. 1 of 2026”, https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2026L01491/asmade/text
US Department of Justice, “HVAC Supplier Johnson Controls Inc. and Two Subsidiaries Agree to Pay $5 Million to Settle Cybersecurity Fraud Allegations”, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/hvac-supplier-johnson-controls-inc-and-two-subsidiaries-agree-pay-5-million-settle
US General Services Administration Office of Inspector General, “HVAC Supplier Johnson Controls Inc. and Two Subsidiaries Agree to Pay $5 Million to Settle Cybersecurity Fraud Allegations”, https://gsaig.gov/news/hvac-supplier-johnson-controls-inc-and-two-subsidiaries-agree-pay-5-million-settle
WSB-TV Channel 2 Atlanta, “$5 million settlement reached after company allegedly failed to protect sensitive government data”, https://cmg-cmg-tv-10010-prod.web.arc-cdn.net/news/local/5-million-settlement-reached-after-company-allegedly-failed-protect-sensitive-government-data/T2NG6ZQ6N5ELFJGR3PZE67WWOU/
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